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Live performances:This song is pre-Guns N' Roses and dates back to Hollywood Rose. It has almost exclusively been played in 1985 and 1986 but also once in 1991. In total it has, as of {UPDATEDATE}, at least been played {BOBSONGS} times.

Information:'Back Off Bitch' was written before Guns N' Roses 1987 debut album, Appetite for Destruction. The lyrics of the song did not help the band's image of being misogynistic. In a 1992 interview with Rolling Stone, Axl said that 'Back Off Bitch' was a "10-year old song" at the time. Therefore, it can be assumed that the song pre-dates the formation of the group. The song was also played during Guns N' Roses concerts before the release of Appetite for Destruction. The song was performed live several times in 1986 before the release of Appetite for Destruction but never made the album. It was also demoed several times by the band during this period. This is one of very few Guns N' Roses songs to feature Izzy Stradlin playing a longer guitar solo. This solo opens the album version. The solo is more complex than the intro played on earlier live versions [Wikipedia].

Lyrics:

Oh baby, pretty babyOh honey, you let me down honeyI ain't playin' childhood games no moreI said it's time for me to even the scoreSo stake your claim, your claim to fameBut baby call another nameWhen you feel the fire, and taste the flame

Back off, back off bitchDown in the gutter dyin' in the ditchYou better back off, back off bitchFace of an angel with the love of a witchBack off, back off bitchBack off, back off bitch

Back off, back off bitchDown in the gutter dyin' in the ditchYou better back off, back off bitchFace of an angel with the love of a witchBack off, back off bitchBack off, back off bitch

Emotions ripped, gone on a bingeLife lipped, I said you're off the hingeTellin' lies of such fame and gloryI don't even wanna hear your story

Back off, back off bitchDown in the gutter dyin' in the ditchYou better back off, back off bitchFace of an angel with the love of a witchBack off, back off bitchIt's such a pity that you're such a bitchBack off, back off bitchIt's time to burn-burn the witchBack off, back off bitchBack off, back off bitchBack off, back off bitchBitchBitchBitchBitch

Hey wha'd'ya think he's tryin' to say there anyway?I think it's something each person's s'posed to take in their own special wayFucking bitch

Quotes from band members:

This is 'Back Off Bitch,' for every guy and girl who just bugs the fuck out of them [Madame Wong's West, July 20, 1984]

This is a real pretty tune. For everybody out there that has somebody, who won't fucking leave them alone, who bugs you a little too much, this song is called, 'Back Off Bitch' [The Troubadour, November 22, 1985]

I play the main solo. I used to play this high-end trill thing for the first solo, but I could never play it consistently. So I just took it off altogether and let Izzy put a lead on, which is really a lot cooler. [...] It's a contemporary-metal style song. [laughs] I mean, it's so generic in that way. It's like E, D, D, D flat, D-that kind of thing. [...] I am just picking them [the fast arpeggios]; I can't tap to save my life [Guitar World, February 1992]

'Back Off Bitch' performed live on the Roxy, January 18, 1986.

Last edited by Soulmonster on Fri Apr 22, 2016 11:02 pm; edited 15 times in total

An early rocker that moved at a swift clip, “Back Off Bitch” was a Hollywood Rose carryover that Axl Rose wrote with Paul Tobias. The track showed up on a 1985 demo by Guns N’ Roses, and, considering its not-so-subtle lyrics, it’s remarkable how long the song meanders since it makes its point pretty early. That length could be one reason why it didn’t make Appetite. When it came out on Use Your Illusion I, “Back Off Bitch” felt like it found a home alongside “Bad Obsession” and “Double Talkin’ Jive.” It’s also the only song on the Illusion albums where Izzy Stradlin solos, taking the lead on the first one you hear (Slash handled the main solo). Rose’s former Hollywood bandmate Chris Weber sued the frontman in 1998, claiming he was one of the songwriters on the track, along with the earlier B-side “Shadow of Your Love.”

Raz Cue mentioned in his book (p. 139) that after having heard Axl sing with Rose (probably back in '84), he talked to his friends Mike Jagosz and Dave Anthony (lead singers in the bands Pyrrhus and Shire, respectively, and brothers) about how great Axl was. Mike and Dave would then mock Axl's vocals by shrieking "Back off, back off, bitch", indicating that the song dates to at least this time.